Cards of Heart
Game Director
Cards of Heart is a cozy digital collectible card game + top-down RPG about a young woman’s journey to confront her mental health struggles against her inner Shadows.
Play as Amalia, a young woman living in a small fantasy town who’s plagued by Shadows after losing her best friend… until a wisp named Ljos gives her the ability to generate cards of light that can push them back.
At a Glance
- Developed for PC and Mac using Unity
- 30+ team members, mostly students at USC
- Target release date: May 2024
As Game Director, my role has included:
Systems Design
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Creating the concept of a digital card game + role-playing game and sketching out the game's core loop
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Inventing a robust card system based on psychology principles
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Playtesting and iterating on this card system using paper prototypes before moving to prototyping in Unity
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Creating an early prototype of the full core loop in Unity to use for communication and recruitment
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Implementing systems content in the game, doing QA testing, and fixing bugs that arise.
Narrative Design
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Developing the broad arc of the game's narrative to synergize with the game's systems
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Writing card statements and descriptions that balance gameplay functionality with mental health education and themes
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Hosting writer's rooms with the narrative team to develop the world, characters, and plot of the game
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Editing scripts from the narrative team for tone and mental health messages
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Implementing narrative content (including dialogue, quests, and cards) in Unity
Project Management and Communication
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Creating design documentation to effectively convey the game's core concepts to team members from all disciplines
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Collaborating with producers to track tasks in Trello and writing cards
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Meeting with clinical psychologists and mental health experts to playtest and discuss the game
Playtesting
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Utilizing focus groups, conduct surveys, and collaborate with clinical psychologists to create more authentic representations of mental health challenges